


there's sweet. there's bitter. (ridiculous.) then, there's you.

by iloveyousweetbean



Series: Chlonette Week (ML Ship Fleet) [1]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Chlonette Week, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Eventual Relationships, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Friends With Benefits, Kissing, Marinette Dupain-Cheng-centric, Neck Kissing, Rated M for Language & Some Scenes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-20
Updated: 2019-08-20
Packaged: 2020-09-18 23:51:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,424
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20321584
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iloveyousweetbean/pseuds/iloveyousweetbean
Summary: Marinette and Chloe have been something more than friends for a while, but Marinette makes a realization and she's not too happy about it once she asks a question regarding exactly what they are.





	there's sweet. there's bitter. (ridiculous.) then, there's you.

**Author's Note:**

> :D Hi! Kudos and Comments are appreciated! I had fun working with this prompt and this takes place seven years after they're done with lycee. You can find me on Tumblr @vipernette. This is for day one of chlonette week: lemon cake.

* * *

“You need to go out and live, Dupain-Cheng!” Chloe shouted as she tugged on Marinette’s arm, but Marinette was clinging onto the counter desperately.

“I’m not ready, Chloe! I have things to do here!” Marinette yelled back, her grip tight on the counter and she wasn’t planning on letting go anytime soon. Her practice sessions as Ladybug kept her strong, even when people who had the (surprising) strength that Chloe did, they couldn’t win against her. 

“You’re going to make me break a nail!” Chloe finally managed to peel Marinette off the counter and she had Marinette by the collar. “Go outside. No one has seen you in a hot minute and they wanted me to drag you out of here.”

“Do they know about...” Marinette paused and buried her head in her hands, “God, we’ve haven’t been making out where people can see and our secret’s out of the bag now, huh? Who knows?”

“Only Alya and Juleka because they caught me coming out of the restroom shortly after you that night. Alya grilled me for hours before freaking out about it, but she didn’t want to ask you and I told her not to.” Chloe grinned and Marinette rolled her eyes at her, making sure it was dramatic enough that she would notice and that grin turned into a scowl. 

“You’re clingy, you know that? One moment, you stop texting me, and the next, you’re blowing up my phone.”

“You’re the clingy one, Chloe. You literally drove all the way over here to what, exactly? Because Alya told you to? ” Marinette snorted in disbelief and stood up to brush the dust off of herself. The bakery needed a sweep and her parents had instructed her to clean up. “I can’t anyway. ”

“I need you to come because I have some amazing people you should meet. They’re very interested in seeing you and-”

“Chloe, I’m not a prize horse for people to bid on, which is exactly what I’m sure you did.” Marinette attempted to push her out of the bakery, “My parents will be back by the end of today and I need to make sure this place is spotless. And besides, I’m not interested in anyone else. You-”

“You should hire Jean-whatever-his-name-is. He’ll-”

“Chloe, we’re not rich.” Marinette cut her off and she knew Chloe was still learning. She was still learning to have friends and she was still learning that some people weren’t born with the same privileges she had been born with. “It’s a nice thought and I appre-”

“I’ll let you borrow him as a gesture of extreme kindness.”

“What’s the catch?” Marinette smirked and placed a hand on her hip knowingly, waiting for Chloe’s answer. “I have to do something for you, it’s fine.  Lycée  was seven years ago. I have more time now.”

“Catch? Can’t I just be-”

“Chloe, cut the bull. In exchange for your service - or rather, your  _ butler’s  _ service- what do you want in return?”

“No money. Just your time. Spend the day with me.” Chloe asked bashfully and it was said under her breath, and Marinette could see how much she was struggling to ask. 

“Did your butler drive you here?” Marinette raised a questioning eyebrow and Chloe shook her head, “It doesn’t matter because I’m going to drive. I don’t trust your driving skills, Chloe. I’d be willing to bet taking jean’s place as your butler, that you at least crashed it into a stop sign on your way here.” 

“I doubt you’d be able to take his place. Jean is really talented and complete multiple tasks all at once, meanwhile, you struggle to do one.” Chloe bumped Marinette with her hip gently as they headed out and Marinette gasped, but Chloe had already walked up ahead. 

Marinette couldn’t help but notice the way she moved and she blushed, but waved it off as her being flattered that Chloe was doing this for her, just to spend time with her.

* * *

“Are we girlfriends?” Marinette glanced at Chloe, who was pulling a long, loose strand of hair on her lap away from her and Chloe gave her a deadly look.

“We don’t need to put a label on this, Dupain-Cheng.” Chloe muttered and turned to face the window and Marinette continued to drive around the city, “I don’t like putting labels on things.”

“So we’re just two gals hanging out and who like to kiss every now and then.” Marinette replied sarcastically, and Chloe snapped her fingers enthusiastically.

“Exactly. I don’t see why people need to put labels on things. If I want to hang out with someone, it doesn’t have to be ‘friends’. If I’m talking to someone, it doesn’t mean we’re ‘friends’.” 

“Chloe, that’s kind of what being friends is.”

“We’re acquaintances, Dupain-Cheng, if you really want to talk about labels.” Chloe answered snippily and Marinette tried not to let that bother her. 

It stung a bit that Chloe didn’t consider them as anything more, but she supposed that had been partially her fault. She never made it clear to Chloe what they were and she knew Chloe was holding her at arm’s length, most likely for Adrien’s sake, or for fear that Marinette wasn’t really over him.

“Okay.”

“Fine.”

The silence as they arrived at the Bourgeois Hotel felt like an eternity and Marinette knew if she spoke, she’d be stretching it.

“I just need to pick up Jean. We’ll drive him back and then we’ll go see what we can do.” Chloe hopped off the car as Marinette was parking it and Marinette sighed, pressing her head against the steering wheel. God, Chloe was hard to figure out sometimes.

Marinette had finally been able to get on good terms with her and helped her navigate her way around the class, slowly befriending others in the class.

With time and patience, by the end of their final year in  lycée , everyone had at least become acquainted with Chloe. But it looked like Chloe didn’t like getting attached to others in that way. She only ever saw people as they were: people.

Nothing more, nothing less and Marinette couldn’t imagine ever living like that. Chloe still held everyone at a distance.

“I’m back!” Chloe announced cheerfully and took her place back in the car, “Jean agreed to do it, and Daddy’s going to pay him by the hour since it’s his day off. We’re going to have a lot of fun, Dupain-Cheng.”

There was a mischievous glint in Chloe’s eyes and Marinette shuddered, as she gripped the steering wheel and began to maneuver her way out of the parking space. 

She was acting like nothing had happened, so Marinette decided to play along.

* * *

“Did you bring me along, just so I could carry your shit?” Marinette grunted, holding all of Chloe’s shoe boxes in one hand and her bags in the other, “Why didn’t you bring Sabrina instead?”

“Do I need to explain everything to you, Dupain-Cheng?” Chloe hissed and tried to wrestle some bags away from Marinette, “If it bothers you that much, then I’ll carry them on my own. Just don’t offer next time if all you’re going to do is bitch about it.”

“Let go, Chlo. I can do it.” Marinette pulled and ended up on the floor instead, with Chloe on top of her and their lips a few inches apart.

For a moment, it seemed like Chloe was going to lean in, but she stood up and quickly picked up her shoes. “My babies! You’re still clumsy, Dupain-Cheng!”

"And you’re still controlling, Chlo.” Marinette helped her pick up her fallen things and shoved them into the back of her car, “I was doing perfectly fine on my own until you decided to fight me on carrying them. You caused the mess.”

“Get in, loser. Hand me the keys.” Chloe demanded and Marinette got into the passenger seat, doing so gladly. “We’re both cranky and we need to relieve some stress.”

“I don’t know how you’re going to manage to save this disaster of a day, Chloe.” Marinette leaned against the car window and she  _ knew  _ Chloe was looking at her, but Marinette refused to look back. 

The acquaintance comment from earlier was still weighing heavily on her mind and  _ maybe  _ she was holding it against Chloe.

_ Maybe. _

* * *

Marinette didn’t imagine her day ending with her sitting on the floor of Chloe’s room, eating her least (actually, she absolutely  _ despised  _ it) favorite cake, lemon cake. But it was Chloe’s favorite and Marinette sat in front of her, picking at it, while Chloe carefully inserted small bites into her mouth and savored it.

“I never understood why you despise like lemon cake, Dupain-Cheng.”

“It leaves a sour taste in my mouth. Blagh, my mouth is watering just talking about it.” Marinette stabbed her fork into the cake and laid down on her back with her legs in the air, glancing down at Chloe.

“So what’s on your mind?” Chloe questioned her, throwing her off and Marinette had truthfully been thinking of when they had both had a little too much to drink at Adrien’s party and had made out in the restroom, away from prying eyes. 

“You’re in a better mood. Suits you.” Marinette smirked, changing the subject, and she could see the way Chloe gripped her fork as she tried to cover a cough from choking on the cake, “Guess it was too bitter, huh?”

“No, but you might be.” Chloe scooted the cake away from them and she crawled over to Marinette, flipping her hair over her shoulders and she held Marinette down when she tried to sit up.

“You’re impossible, you know that?” Marinette breathed, trying to calm herself from being so close to Chloe, and yet, she knew Chloe was still holding her at arm’s length.

“So humor me.” 

“I can’t figure you out.” Marinette squeezed her eyes closed, knowing she had killed the mood, but Chloe’s arms and weight was still on her, pinning her down and she knew Chloe was thinking of something. She  _ had  _ to be thinking of something.

“What can’t you figure out, Marinette? That I don’t like slapping a label on something that I know won’t last?”

“You’re afraid of commitment, Chloe.” Marinette opened her eyes and was met with Chloe’s sharp, blue eyes that were cutting into her, opening her up and examining her.

“I’m  _ not  _ afraid of commitment. I’m not afraid of you, if that’s what you’re implying. People come and people go.” Chloe’s hair was brushing against Marinette’s face, but Marinette was too caught up in listening to Chloe to push it away. “I don’t like getting attached. I’ve never liked getting attached.”

“So then what are you so afraid of?” Marinette challenged, staring intently at Chloe, who met her with the same ferocity and it soon died out.

“I’m afraid you’ll leave, just like everyone else.” Chloe whispered, sounding broken, and Marinette knew she had gotten to the root of the problem.

_ Chloe was afraid of abandonment. _

“Why would I leave?” Marinette reached up to take Chloe’s face into her hands, “I love you.”

It seemed that the ‘I love you’ awoke something in Chloe and Chloe’s lips were on hers, kissing her hungrily, her hands slamming down near Marinette on the floor to try and control her balance. Marinette kissed her back just as hard, with the same passion, trying to outdo her and buried one of her hands in Chloe’s hair, and the other, she placed on the small of her back, making sure to keep her steady. 

All those years of squabbling in school were really just the both of them trying to contain their feelings for one another, and Marinette was digging her fingers into Chloe’s sides, leaving small bruises as she managed to pin Chloe down, breathless and excited.

And Chloe laughed, a beautiful mess, under Marinette’s touch, letting Marinette tease her, kiss her,  _ worship  _ her.

Marinette was alive as she left a trail of kisses from Chloe’s neck all the way to her temple, feeling Chloe fidget under her touch and try to get Marinette to do it again. 

_ God, she was alive. _

“Say it again.” Chloe demanded as she led Marinette from the floor to her bed, not breaking the kiss or away from Marinette for a second, “Please. Say it again.”

“I love you. I  _ love  _ you.” Marinette repeated as they fell onto her bed, drunk on each other’s tastes and as Marinette dove back into Chloe’s lips, she could taste the lingering lemon cake. “There’s sweet. There’s bitter-”

“Ridiculous.”

“And then- oh, god- there’s  _ you _ .”

They both began to giggle and held each other tightly, and they kept toppling each other over, getting more tangled in her sheets.

Marinette and Chloe soon grew tired, tired from the whole day, but it was a good tired, where the exhaustion came from a place of glee.

“You love me.” Chloe murmured once everything was done. Marinette was lying across from her, legs tangled together and their breathing was slowing down, and Marinette nodded with a blush spreading across her cheeks.

“I love you. Even if you love lemon cake, I love you.”

“I guess you’re not all that bad.” Chloe scoffed playfully and Marinette lazily threw a pillow in her face.

“Chloe.” Marinette’s lips pulled into a half-grin when Chloe sat up as much as she could to wack Marinette with her pillow playfully, “If you don’t like labels, then we won’t do labels. If you don’t feel it, that’s okay, too. But I love you.”

“No. I know you’re staying, Dupain-Cheng. I want to give us a real shot. Not random hook ups when we’re bored or when we’re lonely because I…” Chloe struggled with saying it and Marinette took Chloe’s fingers in hers, lacing them together, encouraging her. 

“Because I, too, love you and I want you to be my girlfriend.”

“Of course. I thought you’d never ask.” Marinette poked her stomach playfully and it sent Chloe into shrieks of laughter as Marinette continued to tickle her, rolling over from the bed to the floor with Chloe holding onto her for dear life. “Oh, shit.”

“What?”

“We forgot about Jean.”

It only sent Chloe into another fit of laughter and Marinette couldn’t help but join her, as they got ready to go pick him up.

There was sweet. There was bitter.

_ And then, there was Chloe.  _ Marinette thought as she placed a quick kiss on Chloe’s cheek before she could protest as they headed out.

* * *


End file.
